Turn of Events

We exchanged a glance that seemed to last forever, but that was it. Julie grinned as she returned to her room. I did not disturb her with it.

Perhaps it was just her way. Many other women wore more basic attire. This was standard practice in the village.

I awoke early the next morning. When I awoke, Julie was already awake. "Get ready to leave," she said. "We'll be going to the mines today."

The mines were essential to us. We needed to gather enough mana stones so that Julie could cast her spell against the reinforcements Lucius had sent our way. That was our only hope for a fair fight with the tribe.

If we did not succeed, we would be doomed. The tribe already had more soldiers than we did, and with Lucius' reinforcements, we were almost certain to lose.

Because of how urgent the situation was, we didn't waste any time. Julie and I left my cabin, going straight to the village. It took us a while to get there.

When we arrived, a quick breakfast was already waiting for us. It was just bread, but that was tasty enough to keep me going. There were also a few horses for us, which would help us get to the mines faster.

Apparently, Yula, Julie, and I would be the ones going.

The village chief came forward to speak with us. "Unfortunately, a carriage won't be able to climb up the mountain, so you'll have to bring back the mana stones inside sacks. But according to Julie, it won't be a problem."

Leather sacks held enough mana stones for the spell. Therefore, there was no need for a carriage. Furthermore, the mine was located on a slope, and the weight of the carriage would not only make it hard for us to reach it, but would also lengthen the journey.

We had little time to spend. So we mounted on our horses and departed the village. Only the three of us. Yula knew where the cave was, so she led us there.

"Is this mine abandoned or what?" I inquired: "I don't see the villagers talking about it or going there to work."

The cave contained mana stones, valuable and costly items. I saw no reason why no one would work there to earn money. Things weren't adding up.

Yula enlighted me. "Since I was a child, there have been stories about this cave. Almost no one goes there. Some even say there's a dragon guarding the mana stones."

I wasn't sure if that was true or not, but there would undoubtedly be monsters or other deadly creatures inside an important location like that cave.

Mana stones appeared because of mana, and their potency aroused the attention of other species, particularly magical ones. It was known that monsters might become stronger just by spending years near a large number of mana stones, therefore a formidable beast in the depths of the cave was not out of the question.

But we still had to go there. We traversed a cobblestone road that swiftly transitioned into mud, while the surrounding forest appeared increasingly dense. The sound of civilization diminished, and we felt like we were in the middle of nowhere.

The sound of distant animals and the ever-moving tree canops brought us a sense of peace, but at the same time, a fear of being in the forest.

"How far is this cave anyway?" I asked, "I feel like no one said that to me."

Julie didn't answer me. She didn't know. Yula was the one who lived in the village.

"It's not that far. Do you see that mountain over there? It's up there," Yula said as she pointed at a distant mountain.

I glanced at the location she indicated and calculated that our journey would take a day, a task that proved to be exhausting. The village chief claimed that the mine was really close to the village, but that was not the case.

We had to stop a few times so that the horses—and we too—could rest, drink, and eat something. We tried to go as far as we could without stopping to sleep, but that was something we couldn't avoid forever. At one point, we needed to sleep.

However, despite all the hours we traveled, the mountain where the cave was still appeared to be far away.

Was it just my imagination? Perhaps the angle interfered with my perception. Anyway, using ropes, we tied the horses to a few trees near the road and prepared to camp.

Each of us had a sleeping bag, which was the best road trip accessory. It wasn't like we had enough space to carry a lot of stuff while also returning with the mana stones. So, that was the only thing we would have for the night.

Of course, we worked together to create a campfire so that we could heat up during the night, making it feel less painful and more bearable.

We were around the campfire, eating the fruits we brought with us. I was the first one to talk. "It looks like the mountain is still so far away."

Julie was right beside me. She added, "I thought I was the only one who noticed that."

Yula was the only one who didn't say a word. She was focused on eating and watching our surroundings, making sure no one tried to sneak up during the night.

It didn't take long for each one of us to go to sleep. Before falling asleep, though, Yula warned us.

"The chance of someone showing up is small," Yula said. "But I think we need to be careful. Wake up at any strange noise."

I was with her on that. Having just the sleeping bag made the night way more terrifying. We didn't have walls or even a tent protecting us.

The next morning, we resumed our journey, and the mountain appeared to be getting closer and closer. Eventually, the plain road began to rise, a sign that we were approaching our destination.

One hour after we started climbing, a cave appeared. There was a small wooden cabin in front of the cave.

"The cabin was for the miners, but no one comes here in a long, long time," Yula said.

We stopped the horses at the cave's entrance. Yula entered the cabin and came back with a few oil lamps for us. "This might be useful inside," she said.

That would surely be useful. In any case, I wasn't anticipating bright lighting in that cave.

I grabbed the empty leather sack from the horse's back, as well as the tools to mine the mana stones. Julie did the same.

"Can you two go first? I'll find a suitable place to set the horses."

Julie and I went into the cave, waiting for Yula at the entrance. She was taking quite some time to return, and that was strange.

Then she showed up at the cave's entrance. As we turned around to see her, we heard her say, "I am sorry for this."

I didn't get why Yula was apologizing, and then I heard the noise of rocks falling down. Yula had destroyed the cave entrance somehow, trapping me and Julie inside.